College Fund Drive Raises $6.31 Million

The Harvard College Fund drive for fiscal year 1978 raised $6.31 million, an increase of $215,000 over last year, Peter F. CLifton, executive director of the Fund, said yesterday.

Clifton said a drive for increased donations from non-reunion classes helped push the 1978 total donations past the goal of $6.25 million.

The Class of 1978, however, pledge 1 significantly less than expected because of a boycott of the Fund by many seniors who said they would not donate any money to Harvard until it divests its South African investments, Clifton said.

Boycott Works

Slightly more than 30 per cent of the Class pledged donations, while Fund officials had set a goal of 50 per cent, he said.

Alan I. Frolich '78, a member of the Southern Africa Solidarity Committee (SASC) and an organizer of the boycott, said yesterday the decline in pledges "indicates that students are committed enough to withhold what the University needs--which is money."

Radcliffe

The Radcliffe College Fund drive for 1978 collected slightly under $2 million. Burton I. Wolfman, administrative dean of Radcliffe, said yesterday. Radcliffe Fund officials said exact figures for the drive are not available.

Clifton said of the Harvard drive that other than this year's graduating class "younger classes have been doing well lately."

Fund officials are beginning to concentrate on increasing donations from non-reunion classes, Clifton said. The drive will start earlier next year and make more extensive use of telephone soliciting from Fund representatives contacting members of their classes, he added.

Boycott Again

Frolich said students next year may try to extend the boycott to other classes. "We may try to reach out to the alumni," he said.

The boycott "is one way to get the University to change policy," Frolich added.

The success of the boycott this year "indicates that the students are more serious than some administrators, such as President Bok, seem to believe," Frolich said.